Why The Question Of Trump’s Mental Fitness May Be Better Than Impeachment

When will Republicans decide they've had enough of his antics?

Chatter in mainstream and social media about Donald Trump‘s mental fitness for office appears to be growing louder and louder amid his threats of nuclear war against North Korea, challenging Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to an IQ Test, and provoking a Twitter fight with Republican U.S. Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, calling him, um, “Liddle Bob Corker.” Yes, the president of the United States tweeted that.

The Failing @nytimes set Liddle' Bob Corker up by recording his conversation. Was made to sound a fool, and that's what I am dealing with!

Trump’s social media rampage occurs against the backdrop of a fledging administration that has faltered at every turn, including losing a battle to overturn Obamacare, failing to institute a sweeping travel ban, and enduring an investigation by a special prosecutor in Russia’s interference in the presidential election. As a result, advisors fear Trump “is unraveling” under pressure.

Sen. Corker, a respected leader in his party, made the first viable inroad to the possibility when he recently expressed concern to The New York Times that Trump has the nation on the road to World War III, which among other comments prompted the president to call him “Liddle” Bob Corker.

“[Corker’s comments] brought into the open what several people close to the president have recently told me in private: that Trump is ‘unstable,’ ‘losing a step,’ and ‘unraveling,’” Gabriel Sherman wrote in Vanity Fair. “The conversation among some of the president’s longtime confidantes, along with the character of some of the leaks emerging from the White House has shifted. There’s a new level of concern. ”

Longtime Democratic California U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters has been vocal about calling for Trump’s impeachment. And Democratic U.S. Rep. Al Green on Wednesday introduced Articles of Impeachment on the House floor, but the mission appeared to stall. Perhaps it became clear Green and other proponents of impeachment that Republicans also have serious concerns about the president’s behavior, and the 25th Amendment might be the best avenue.

But the bottom line is that Republicans, who control the House and Senate, have to make a decision about when they’ve had enough. And some critics want to know why his unbiddable Twitter rants and the threats of nuclear war are not enough.